Videos

"Purging the Poorest: Public Housing and the Design Politics of Twice-Cleared Communities." April 10, 2013 Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning Professor Larry Vale discussed his book: 'Purging the Poorest: Public Housing and the Design Politics of Twice-Cleared Communities.'

"Training Workshop: NGO Evaluation and Displacement Monitoring" February 21, 2013 Kothari led a training workshop on NGO practices with respect to displacement: specifically how NGOs approach social impact analysis, and methodologies, tools and criteria for appraising projects. The former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing, Kothari has played a key role in developing many of these tools.

Associate Professor of Law and Development at the MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning Professor Balakrishnan Rajagopal and former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing Miloon Kothari discuss the rapid growth of Indian cities and the resulting political and human rights challenges.

UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food Olivier de Schutter visited MIT on November 27, 2012. He spoke on "The New Competition for Land and the Rights of Land Users".

Fourth Panel of the Property from Below Symposium, March 1, 2014 Jun Borras, International Institute of Social Studies, A land sovereignty alternative? Towards a People's (Counter)Enclosure Priscilla Claeys, University of Louvain, Right to Land and Control Over Territories: How Peasants Movements are Claiming and Creating New Rights Henry Thomas, Via Campesina, Why Rights of Peasants?

Opening Remarks Balakrishnan Rajagopal, Founder, Displacement Research and Action Network, MIT Olivier DeSchutter, University of Louvain & UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food Opening Plenary: The Global Commodification of Land Philip McMichael, Cornell University Saskia Sassen, Columbia University Ruth Hall, University of the Western Cape Duncan Kennedy, Harvard Law School Chair: Balakrishnan Rajagopal, MIT

Former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing Miloon Kothari discussed past development challenges, with particular attention to persistent displacement of urban and rural poor, as well as emerging trends, and future avenues for both research and action. Ford International Professor of Law and Development Balakrishnan Rajagopal acted discussant.

This panel brought together activists, scholars and planners working on the front lines of the struggle to maintain and strengthen communities affected by gentrification and displacement in the greater Boston area. The event was hosted by MIT's Displacement Research and Action Network (DRAN) and the Resilient Cities Housing Initiative (RCHI).

The MIT Displacement Research & Action Network (DRAN) hosted a discussion with Mohan Das Manandhar, Executive Director of the Niti Foundation, on the intersection of displacement disputes, social inclusion and energy policy. Having worked in Nepal, India, UK and Japan, Mohan Das Manandhar is the first Executive Director and founding member of Niti.